


Kiss From A Rose

by HerOwlness



Category: Passions
Genre: Alternate Universe, Complete, F/M, Future Fic, POV Third Person Limited
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-12
Updated: 2013-06-12
Packaged: 2017-12-14 17:55:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,271
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/839714
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HerOwlness/pseuds/HerOwlness
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What if Reese left Harmony after high school? What would happen if Kay ran into a very different Reese from the one she thought she knew in high school?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part One

**Part One**  
“There are two tragedies in life.  
One is not to get your heart's desire.  
The other is to get it.”  
—George Bernard Shaw

_117 Morrison Avenue_  
 _Madison, Wisconsin_  
 _December 25, 2012; 8:19 p.m._  
“Ho, ho, ho,” he muttered to himself as he walked through his front door. His beautifully decorated Christmas tree shone brightly through darkness that filled his home. He quickly switched on the overhead light, trying to forget what a merry Christmas it hadn’t been. 

He’d spent the whole day working, just as he had the day before. He’d needed to keep himself busy, to stop wishing that Jonathan and Amelia weren’t completely negligent in their parenting duties. 

It was odd, he knew, calling his parents by their first names, but that was how he’d always thought of them. He had been raised by a nanny, while they flitted from country to country and state to state taking care of the child they *truly* loved – his father’s computer company. 

They never said it, but he knew that they had never wanted any children or planned on having any children. But here he was all the same. Spending Christmas just as he had the past eight years. 

Alone. 

He pushed those thoughts from his mind, glad that his job had kept him from spending all day obsessing over the fact that his parents didn’t love him, over the fact that they barely noticed he existed. 

Who cared if he had spent Christmas alone and at work? He’d helped a number of sick people feel better. And, besides, by taking Angie’s hours, she’d been able to spend the holiday with her family. 

Damn, he was tired of all of the endless self-pity. Not to worry though – a case of beer and his favorite movies should be enough to make him forget. 

~*~ 

_11:24 p.m._  
Four beers and two Star Wars movies later, he was finally asleep. 

Well, in and out of sleep, to be precise. While the alcohol had helped him forget why he was so upset, they also ensured that he would get a restless night’s sleep. But sleep was sleep, regardless of how restful it was. A sudden shift in the bed roused him from his latest trip into dreamland. 

But, then again, as he opened his eyes to determine the cause of the movement, perhaps he was still dreaming. 

Beside him lay the woman of his dreams. 

“K – Kay?” he whispered in wonderment, reaching a hand out to caress her cheek. 

As she leaned into his touch, a look of pure contentment flitted across her features. It was official. He was still dreaming. 

Besides the fact that he hadn’t heard from Kay since they’d both left Harmony and headed off to different universities, not once in all the years that they had dated had she looked at him like she was at that very moment. Despite her lust-filled gaze and seductive smile, he couldn’t believe that she wanted him. 

“Merry Christmas,” she whispered silkily as she leaned down to cover his mouth with her own. 

They kissed for a moment, but he pulled away before he completely lost his grip on reality. He had to know the reason behind Kay’s sudden appearance. 

“What are you doing here? How did you get in here? I mean, I – ” 

She laughed lightly as she placed a finger over his lips to quiet him. “Don’t talk,” she instructed. “Tonight is about feeling, about loving. I want you to take me, Reese. Make me yours.” 

He hesitated for a moment, unable to believe what he was hearing. This was the woman who had always put up a brave front when it came to the topic of making love. He vividly remembered when she had climbed into his sleeping bag at the Harmony ruins and told him that she had brought protection so that they could be together. He’d reacted by moving his body on top of hers and kissing her senseless. She’d ended up running off, scared by the fast pace that he’d taken. 

He vowed to himself that the same thing would not happen tonight. 

For some reason, he had been granted a second chance. He now had the opportunity to show Kay how she deserved to be loved, and he sure as hell wasn’t going to move too quickly this time. No, he would take his time and worship her body the way he’d always dreamed. 

Before he started in on his exploration, he looked into her eyes to be certain that this was what she really wanted. Instead of the heated gaze he’d met earlier, he saw hurt and shame. 

“Never mind,” she mumbled softly, quickly removing herself from his embrace and his bed. “I shouldn’t have come here. This was a mistake.” 

He watched wordlessly as she awkwardly slipped into her shoes before heading for his now open window. So *that* had been how she’d gotten in. 

“Kay, wait.” 

She turned at the sound of his voice, and he could see her tears glistening in the moonlight. 

“What now, Reese?” she asked between sobs. “You clearly don’t want anything to do with me. Why should I hang around and let you get your kicks rejecting the girl you wanted all through high school?” 

“Kay, please trust me,” he asked, as he beckoned with his hand for her to come closer. 

She took exactly one step forward. 

“Look, we’ve established the fact that you don’t want me anymore. What else is there to say?” 

“Personally,” he began as he slowly stood and approached her, “I feel that words are highly overrated. Besides, what was it you said? Don’t talk; just feel.” 

With that, he covered her mouth with his own, his actions saying the words that he wouldn’t let pass his lips. 

His fingers found the buttons on her blue linen blouse just as hers found the hem of his gray athletic shirt. They laughed together as their arms tangled between them. Soon, Kay was standing beside his bed clothed in only her rosy-hued bikinis and matching brassiere. 

Taking only a quick moment to appreciate the stunning body before him, Reese quickly scooped her up in his arms and laid her gently on his bed. Kay’s fingers reached for the clasp of her bra, preparing to remove it, but the man hovering above her shook his head slightly. He wanted to have the pleasure of revealing the most intimate parts of her body. This was, after all, a moment he had dreamt of for a number of years. 

His fingers went to her waist, tracing her sides lightly as they made their way to her back. He felt for the clasp and smiled gently as he unhooked the item that had hidden her breasts. As the delicately embroidered brassiere fell away from her body, a slow smile spread across his face. 

Beautiful. Gorgeous. Sexy. Amazing. 

It mattered not what words his mind might come up with. Reese knew they would never be able to fully encompass every thought, every desire, every emotion that coursed through him at the sight of Kay’s wonderfully naked body. 

Well, he amended mentally as he took note of the soft cotton panties she still wore, Kay’s wonderfully *almost*-naked body. 

Soon after, he began to place soft kisses on her silky skin, causing her to let out a soft whimper. He couldn’t help but wonder why Kay had come to him, to his bed, on this night of all nights, but he planned to do everything in his power to be sure that she never regretted it. 

After he allowed his mouth to worship both of her luscious peaks, he began to lay gentle kisses in the valley between her breasts. Slowly, he moved his lips down her body, following the curve of her bottom rib and tasting the skin of her well-toned stomach until he saw the pale fabric of her delicate panties. After carefully removing them from her body, his hands moved upwards between her slender legs. 

One word stilled his movement. 

“Reese.” 

His head jerked up to look at the porcelain skin of the one he loved. 

“Love me,” she demanded. “Now.” 

“I do,” he whispered, more to himself than to her. 

“I will,” he promised, for her benefit, moving his body until he was positioned directly over her. Slowly he entered her, reveling in the moment he had dreamed of all his life. Finally, he was making love to the woman of his dreams. Finally, he would wake in the arms of the one he loved. Finally, they would be one. 

She quickly wrapped her legs around his lean waist, matching him thrust for thrust. At first, their movements were soft and languid, as they enjoyed the first sensations of their union. 

It wasn’t too long before their smooth rhythm had turned hard and fast, as Reese felt his release grow near. But he refused to surrender to it. Not yet. Not until Kay had found hers. 

At that moment, he felt her walls tighten around him, letting out an unintelligible cry as she fell back upon the bed sheets. Shortly thereafter, he found his own release, and lay down beside her. They stayed like that for a number of minutes, neither wanting to move and disturb the heady sensations that were coursing through their bodies. 

Much later, he rolled slowly onto his side and pulled her pliant body into his warm embrace. He took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh wildflower scent of her soft, brunette mane. 

“Thank you for loving me,” she whispered softly. 

“Thanks for letting me.” 

~*~ 

_December 26, 2012; 8:19 a.m._  
As the morning sun shone through his windows, Reese slowly roused into consciousness. His arms instinctively moved around, searching for the body he had explored so thoroughly the night before. Finding only cool sheets around him, he was forced to open his eyes. 

“Kay?” he called out, as he scanned the room and listened carefully for any footfalls coming from within his home. 

Nothing. 

Was it possible that it had all been nothing more than a dream? The whole experience – Kay coming to him, Kay coming *on* to him, Kay loving him ... Could his subconscious possibly be so cruel? 

Frustrated, both emotionally and sexually, Reese flipped over onto his belly and buried his head into his fluffy pillow. 

His pillow that smelled of wildflowers. 

His gaze quickly flew towards the window, finding it wide open, allowing the cool winter air into his room. 

A jubilant smile instantly spread across his face. She *had* been here. She *had* allowed him to love her. The previous night *had not* been merely a dream, a cruel joke played upon him by his subconscious. 

A sobering thought crossed his mind. But she’d also left him during the night. Without a note, without saying goodbye, without any hope that he might see her again – in bed, or otherwise. 

She couldn’t regret it. How could something so beautiful, so wonderful have been a mistake? 

But what if she did? 

Reese let out a long sigh. No matter what she felt, the fact was that he still had last night. He still had that fantastic, earth-shattering night. 

And nothing would change that. 

Nothing at all.


	2. Part Two

**Part Two**  
“Of the thirty-six ways of avoiding disaster, running away is the best.”  
—Anonymous

_Somewhere on University Avenue_  
 _Madison, Wisconsin_  
 _December 26, 2010; 6:42 a.m._  
“Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!” Kay swore repeatedly as she drove down the open road.  “What the hell were you thinking?” 

Her gaze momentarily shifted from the empty road before her to her slender fingers that gripped the steering wheel.  There wasn’t anything remarkable about her fair-skinned hands.  However, the ostentatious ring that typically adorned her fourth finger was sitting on her dresser back home. 

When James had insisted on her wearing that particular ring as her wedding band, she was shocked.  The platinum gold band was embedded with a large diamond, which was surrounded by a heart-shaped ruby on both sides.  It was a very expensive ring, and she was touched that James felt that she was worth all of the money that it had cost him. 

But, really, she wasn’t all that fond of it.  It was too big, too flashy, and too showy.  She would have preferred a simply gold band with a small and simple diamond embedded in it.  Still, she had let James buy the larger, more expensive ring.  More importantly, she had mistaken his willingness to shower her with expensive gifts for love.  More importantly, she had married him, believing in his deep love for her.  However, she had broken her marriage vows the previous night, during the unbelievable moments of passion that she’d shared with Reese. 

Oh, Reese, her heart cried out.  She’d wanted to stay with him this morning.  When she’d awoken in his warm and comforting embrace, she’d felt that she was finally where she belonged. 

But it wasn’t where she belonged.  She belonged with her husband, not with the only man who had ever and would ever love her. 

Reese would be so hurt if he ever discovered that she was married.  She knew that he would be beyond shocked to learn that he had slept with a married woman.  He would feel betrayed and feel as if he had betrayed his fellow man in some way.  He would hate her for causing him to unknowingly have an affair with a married woman. 

She had changed so much over the past few years, in ways that Reese would never predict.  However, the one thing that remained the same was that she was still Kay Bennett.  James had hated his last name – for obvious reasons.  He was originally James Pirocanac, but he had insisted on taking her name.  Another sign that she had taken to believe that he was truly in love with her, that he was really in love with her family, and not with her. Another sign that she hadn’t wanted to see and had refused to acknowledge or accept. 

After Miguel married Charity, she had finally realized that her pursuit of her best friend was causing everyone pain and heartache, and that if he didn’t love her, she would have to find a man who would. 

Of course, by this time, Reese had already left for college.  They’d broken up before they left, and she hadn’t bothered to pay attention to where he was going to school or even what he was studying. 

Was he happy now?  Was he happier without her around to screw up his life? 

She would never know; she could never let herself find out.  She would have to stay away from him and try her best to pretend that the previous night had never happened – no matter how hard that might be. 

*** 

_18 Violet Place_  
 _Sun Prairie, Wisconsin_  
 _December 26, 2012; 7:06 a.m._  
She hated her mother. 

Well, perhaps that was a bit strong.  She just really *really* disliked her mother. 

A lot. 

But she still kept trying to win her mother’s attention, her mother’s approval, her mother’s love. 

Of course, she had almost no success. 

She supposed that her marriage to James was an attempt to get her mother to love her the way that she loved Charity, or the way that she loved Jessica.  After all, her mother was the first to throw all of her support behind his involvement with her eldest daughter. 

But then again, James was probably one of the only people in the world who could honestly tell her mother that he loved her tomato soup cakes.  And the fact that he always requested that she make one for him for all the important occasions only made Grace Bennett love him more. 

And it made her loathe her husband and his inactive taste buds for forcing her to swallow at least one piece of the dreadful dessert at each birthday, anniversary, and major holiday. 

Upon her arrival back home, she’d seen a package from Harmony sitting on the front porch. 

His tomato soup cake. 

It was that sight that had started her most recent tirade against her mother, her husband, and her fucked up life. 

The flashing of her answering machine brought her out of her cycle of self-loathing for a moment.  Quickly, she pressed the button, wondering who might have called while she was out the previous night. 

“Hey, honey.  Just wanted to call and let you know that I’ll be getting home at ten-twenty tomorrow night.  I really wish we could have spent the holidays together, but I know that you understand that I just couldn’t cut this trip short.  I’ll see you soon, sweetheart.  Hope you had a merry Christmas.” 

Kay quickly reached out to hit the delete button, never wanting to hear the saccharine sweet words that her husband had recorded ever again.  She knew that he didn’t care about missing out on spending time with her.  His actions of the past had proved as much. 

Two months ago, he had been out of town on a business trip.  He was always away on business trips – not that she minded.  Anyhow, her father was planning a surprise birthday party for her mother, and he hadn’t thought he’d be able to make it.  He was, of course, devastated, but had managed to find a way to come to Harmony for a day before he’d had to fly back to Sicily. 

He hadn’t even tried to come home for one day for her.  Ever. 

And that hurt. 

That was what had sent her running to Reese the night before.  That was what had caused her to climb into his bed and make wild, passionate love to him all night long. 

Well, she thought as she dropped onto the couch, that and the fact that it was nice to be loved again, to be treasured again. 

James dropped that act barely a week after they were married.  Sure, he worked at keeping up the charade that they were happily married, but he didn’t seem to care as much about giving her what she wanted or what she needed. After all, he’d gotten what he’d wanted – an ‘in’ with a normal family, *her* normal family.  Why bother about her wants and desires? 

She had to admit that she didn’t really miss the sex in their relationship.  That, after all, had never really been James’s forte.  But she missed the sweet words, the things that he used to do for her to make her feel like she was the most wonderful woman in the world. 

The things that Reese had done for her the night before. 

When she had seen him walking out of Starbucks the week before, she’d thought that she was imagining things.  After all, what were the chances that Reese Durkee – *her* Reese Durkee – would end up in the same city as her, after all these years? 

So she’d followed him from a distance, waiting to find out that her eyes were just showing her what she wanted to see. 

But that wasn’t what happened.  Instead she had seen this man helping a young boy pick some things that he’d dropped on the sidewalk, and she’d seen him open a car door for a woman who’d had her hands full.  He was the same, helpful, wonderful Reese Durkee that he’d always been.  And she knew it for a fact when she saw him walk into a house with the name “Durkee” written on the mailbox. 

When she’d gone to his home the previous night, she had no intentions of sleeping with him – let alone of talking to him.  But when she peeked in the window and saw him rolling restlessly beneath his covers, she hadn’t been able to stop herself from climbing through the window to get closer to him, to touch him. 

Admittedly, things had gotten a little out of hand.  She had never planned to take things as far as they’d gone. 

But she didn’t regret it. 

Not at all.  Not one moment of the time that she’d spent in his bed. 

That didn’t mean that it could happen again.  In fact, it could never happen again. 

She knew that.  She believed that. 

But she still wondered what would happen if she went to see him again. 

Would he take her in his arms again?  Would he kiss her deeply again? 

Would he tell her that he loved her again? 

She reached for the phone, wanting to call him and tell him how sorry she was for leaving him that morning.  She wanted to explain everything, tell him everything. 

But what if he told her to get lost?  What if he said that he wasn’t going to be her fuck buddy on the side?  What if he told her that he didn’t love her, that he couldn’t love her? That no one could love her? 

Would his words break her heart?  Or would they heal the wounds that had been inflicted on it during the course of her lifetime? 

It didn’t matter.  It *couldn’t* matter, she decided as she pulled her hand away from the phone.  She wouldn’t let it matter. 

No, she wouldn’t go near his bed again.  She wouldn’t go near his home again.  She wouldn’t go near *him* again. 

At least, not if she could help it.


	3. Part Three

**Part Three**  
“You know, Hobbes, some days even my lucky rocketship underpants don’t help.”  
—Calvin; _Calvin and Hobbes_

_117 Morrison Avenue_  
 _Madison, Wisconsin_  
 _January 14, 2013; 10:23 p.m._  
Hands traced the contours of a body. Lips placed gentle kisses upon the skin of another. Bodies moved as one: yearning, seeking, and enjoying. 

Love or lust? Not an issue. They were together. They had each other. And that was all that mattered. 

*** 

_January 15, 2013; 9:14 a.m._  
The sheets were cold, as was his heart. 

He was alone, and with her disappearance, a part of his heart had vanished. 

He had been so sure that this time it would be different, that this time he would awake to find the woman he loved beside him. Whatever her reasons had been for disappearing the previous time, he was certain that she must have worked everything out that had caused her to flee a few weeks prior. 

Clearly, that hadn’t been the case. 

He had supposed that she probably had some kind of appointment or meeting when she had left the previous time. After all, most everyone has hectic schedules during the holiday season. It wasn’t the case for him, but her parents had always been more loving and nurturing than his own. He had supposed that he was blessed that she had taken the time out of her certainly busy life to come to him, to his home, to his bed. He was positive that she would call him when she had a free moment. Of course she would. She had to. 

The days passed into weeks without any word from her. He didn’t know where she was, what she was doing, or what she was thinking. Did she live in the Madison area or was she merely passing through? What did she do for a living? Was she happy? 

While all of these questions were important, there was a more pressing matter that he couldn’t stop wondering about. 

Did she finally realize that she loved him? 

The answer meant so much to him, and he wanted to hope for the best, believe that everything was fine, but he couldn’t stop torturing himself with the fact that maybe Kay didn’t love him. Rather, her appearance in his bed had only meant that she’d found a new way to break his heart. 

When she had come to him, again, the night before, he was certain that she would stay this time, certain that she would tell him what was going on and why she had left before. 

But this morning, she had disappeared again before he awoke, forcing him to face the reality that maybe she didn’t love him after all, that maybe he was just another roll in the sack for her. 

But still, he couldn’t help concentrating on the fact that she had come back to him a second time. Furthermore, after their first time together, she had thanked him for loving her. That had to mean *something* – didn’t it? He had to mean *something* to her – didn’t he? 

*She* was the one who came to him in the middle of the night and came onto him – twice. She wasn’t the kind of woman who would sleep with men who meant nothing to her – was she? 

No. No, the Kay that he had known back in Harmony was nothing like that, and he doubted that she could have changed so enormously in the decade that had passed since he’d left her and the rest of that town behind. 

He meant something to her. He was sure of it. If nothing else, she lusted after him – that much was clear. Why else would she come to him, for no other reason but to fuck him senseless before fleeing? It was progress of a sort, he supposed. 

Hell, who was he kidding? He was involved in something most men only *dreamed* of! He got the sexual gratification that came with being involved with the most beautiful woman he knew, and he didn’t have to deal with any of the mess that went along with maintaining a relationship. He was lucky – damned lucky – to be her fuck buddy. Right? 

Not quite, he admitted to himself as he rolled onto his back. Some of his happiest memories were of times that he had spent with Kay while they were in high school. He wanted to date her. He wanted to love her. He wanted to marry her, have children with her, and be with her forever. However, the fact that he couldn’t get her to stay by his side until he awoke was more than slightly problematic. What the hell was he going to do? 

There was only one option, really. He couldn’t turn her away the next time she came to him – he knew that his willpower wasn’t strong enough to turn away the woman he’d loved for much of his adult life. Instead, he vowed then and there to be the best lover she’d ever had. She’d fall in love with him soon enough. 

Right? 

*** 

_Outside 117 Morrison Avenue_  
 _Madison, Wisconsin_  
 _March 8, 2013; 6:32 a.m._  
She was a miserable excuse for a human being. 

There was no other way of looking at it. After all, what kind of person was she if she repeatedly allowed herself to be fucked senseless by a man who clearly adored her, before fleeing early the next morning? 

But, really, she had no choice. She couldn’t possibly stay with him in that bed until he woke up in the morning. She knew Reese Durkee better than she knew herself sometimes, and he would look at her with love in his eyes and make her feel worse than she already did. 

Assuming that was possible, somehow. 

She already felt bad enough that she had ignored him all through high school and easily forgotten him when he had headed off to college. She got married without giving him a second thought, let alone an invitation. And now, when she finally faced the reality that her marriage was a complete and total farce, he was the first one that she turned to. Hell, he was the only one that she *could* turn to. 

She knew that that was no one’s fault but her own. After she came to terms with the fact that Miguel didn’t love her and would never love her the way that she wanted him to, she had consciously put space between them. She’d believed that by continuing to rely on him as her best friend, she would never be able to give up on her love for him. 

She knew it was the right decision. Her love for Miguel was the result of her addiction to his presence, to his friendship. And, as with any addiction, the easiest way to quit was to go cold turkey. She couldn’t allow herself to ruin his future, or Charity’s future, just because she was acting like a jealous ex-girlfriend who wanted to make everyone else around her miserable. 

So she left Harmony for the University of Massachusetts, dying inside whenever her parents would mention Charity’s engagement, and then her wedding plans, and finally her baby shower. But in time, it worked. Her feelings for Miguel were in the past, and she was ready to move on with her life. 

She ran into James Pirocanac outside of the psychology building – literally. She’d overslept and was late for a class, and he was wandering around campus, trying to find his friend’s dormitory. Class and friend forgotten, they went out for lunch, and she found herself instinctively trusting this man, telling him everything about her and her family. “It was love at first sight,” she told everyone who’d come to her wedding three months later. After all, love had to be his motivation for wanting to marry her so quickly. 

Now she knew better. 

For six long years, she’d survived on expensive gifts and elaborate excuses, but she knew now that she was drowning in the river of denial. James had bought her affections, her trust, and her goddamned family. He manipulated her, giving her what she thought she wanted and needed, so that she would give him the thing that he craved above all things. 

A real and true family. 

Not a family with her, of course. He certainly wasn’t interested in forming a family of his own – at least “not quite yet, dear.” He always had a reason, an excuse. First, he needed to get a promotion so he could support her and their baby. Then, he had to earn enough money so that they could move to the suburbs. And now? Now there was always this contract to sign or that problem to resolve or this buy-out to complete. 

At the beginning, she believed him and his excuses, when he said that one day they would start a family. But then, with the growing distance between them, she began to want children so that she would have someone to spend time with. She wanted to have someone to take care of, someone who depended on her and needed her in a way that her husband never would. Subconsciously, perhaps she wanted some proof that what she and James had was real, that he really loved her. 

That was the one thing that he could never give her. After all, you can’t buy proof of something that doesn’t exist, now can you? 

But she had Reese now, and she no longer wanted to have a family with James. She didn’t want to have anything that would bind her to him for the rest of her life. 

She did, however, want to be bound to Reese forever. She wanted to marry him, bear his children, and grow old with him. The problem was, in order to do that she would have to tell him the truth. 

Now, one would think that telling the truth to the man she loved wouldn’t be all that difficult. After all, Reese had loved her for so many years, despite of all the horrible things that she had done. But it was that very fact that scared her. 

What if she had finally done something that he wouldn’t be able to look past, something that he wouldn’t be able to forgive? He had loved her in spite of her many flaws for so long, but *this* … This could be the straw that broke the proverbial camel’s back. 

She knew that the longer she waited, the more difficult it would be to tell him. How could she tell him, really? 

_Oh, Reese, just in case I haven’t mentioned it yet, I’m married. That’s not a problem, is it?_

Or … 

_Wow, Reese, you’re so much better in bed than my husband is._

Really, what the fuck could she say? 

More importantly, what the fuck was she going to do? 

*** 

_117 Morrison Avenue_  
 _Madison, Wisconsin_  
 _April 2, 2013; 3:13 a.m._  
He watched silently as she slept. The rise and fall of her chest, the soft nonsensical murmurings that fell from her lips … It was as if they were secrets about her that were meant for him and him alone. 

Ordinarily, he would fall directly from post-coital bliss into dreamland, but tonight, everything was different. Tonight she had changed everything between them. Tonight she had said the words that he had always dreamed of hearing her say. 

Granted, she probably thought that he was asleep. Hell, he almost *was* asleep, when he heard the magic words slip past her lips. 

“I love you, Reese,” she’d whispered so quietly he thought he’d imagined it. But then she repeated herself, just as soft, but with a greater emphasis. 

“God, do I love you.” 

He lay beside her silently, his well-and-truly-fucked mind trying to make sense of her words, trying to understand their meaning. His body cocooning hers, he felt her shift slightly, as a single teardrop landed on his arm. 

It’s amazing how much of a difference a lone, glistening tear can make. He was about to reply to her words and tell her that he loved her as well, but her crying gave him pause. 

Why would she cry after admitting that she loved him? She knew that he loved her. He made no secret of it and said it repeatedly as they were making love. However, until this night, she had never mentioned her feelings for him, and even now, she waited until she thought he was asleep. Why? 

Was there something wrong with loving him, with admitting this to him? What could she possibly be thinking? He had no way of knowing, really. Not without asking her. 

So that’s what he was planning to do. He was going to stay up all night, and pray that she would stay with him the next morning. If not, however, he was preparing himself to stop her from leaving and convince her to explain her actions to him. She’d have some logical explanation, of course. A *good* explanation. And once they got that out of the way, they could go ahead with planning a future together. 

She loved him, and Reese instinctively knew that everything was going to be okay. Finally, everything would be as it should. 

*** 

_5:42 a.m._  
He wasn’t tired. 

Typically, such a fact would be nothing out of the ordinary. He had no reason to be tired most of the time, but it was so very early in the morning, and he had yet to sleep that night. 

In college, of course, he had pulled his fair share of all-nighters. However, in those instances, he’d ingested a high-volume of caffeinated drinks. 

Now, though, he was captivated by the woman who lay silently beside him. She was so beautiful, so wonderful. And she was his. All his. 

She stirred in his arms and disrupted him from his present train of thought. She shifted her weight, trying to envelope herself further within his embrace, as a tiny smile grew upon her face. 

A matching grin played on his own lips, as he gently kissed her temple. “Wake up, birthday girl,” he murmured lovingly. 

“Not my birthday,” she mumbled in reply, clearly trying to reclaim the dreams that had slipped from her grasp. 

“I know your birthday was yesterday, but we were occupied with other things last night.” He chuckled softly, as he saw a warm blush spread across her features. He released her from his tight grasp and rolled onto his side to face her. “Come on, open your eyes. I got you something.” 

“Reese, you shouldn’t have,” she admonished him quietly. 

“Maybe so, but I still did. Now sit up,” he instructed, as he forced her into a seated position against the headboard. He reached for the large red gift bag that he had placed on his bedside table a few nights prior and handed it to her. 

He watched as she reached inside the bag with a combination of incredulity and an emotion he didn’t quite recognize. If forced to venture a guess, he would say that she was afraid – of the gift, of him, of something – but that simply didn’t make any sense. 

When he saw her trembling hands remove the brightly wrapped box from within the bag, his initial suspicions were confirmed. She was afraid – but of what? 

Kay made quick work of the paper, and opened the porcelain white box to find another box – smaller, of course, and wrapped in green tissue paper. She scowled at him, as he’d expected, but he knew that she wasn’t really mad. Annoyed, certainly, but he hoped that he had chosen the right gift. 

He’d actually originally started looking for a gift to give her on Valentine’s Day, but he couldn’t find anything that wasn’t too sappy. At that time, he wasn’t even sure if she loved him, let alone if they even had any hope of a relationship. 

A shocked gasp told him that she had opened the inner-most box and found her gift. 

He hadn’t been planning to give her jewelry since that seemed somehow inappropriate given their situation. But when he saw the delicate heart-shaped gold locket, he knew that he had to get it for her. 

“Do you like it?” he asked, instantly ashamed of himself for acting like an overeager eight-year-old. “I mean, I know you probably don’t wear very much jewelry, but I thought you might be willing to make an exception.” 

“Reese … ” she breathed tremulously. “It’s beautiful, but … ” 

“Did you look inside yet?” he questioned, as he separated the two shells of the heart to reveal a small photo of the two of them when they were still in elementary school. 

She examined the photo closely for a few moments until recognition dawned on her face. “Is this picture from – “ 

“Little League? Yup, you pitched a no-hitter in that game, I think, and I was so proud of you. Most of the guys on the team were giving you grief because you were on our team, but that day you proved that you belonged.” 

“Oh, Reese,” she whispered, as she brushed her fingertips lightly across his jawbone. “Thank you.” 

“Wait. That’s not all,” he interrupted. “I had it engraved.” 

She opened her mouth to interrupt, but he quickly put a finger over her lips, as he flipped the locket over. 

“Forever yours,” he read aloud, as he gently traced the lettering. “Because I’ve always loved you, Kay. I know now that I always will. I just know that – ” 

“Reese, stop,” she demanded firmly as tears rolled down her cheeks. 

“What?” he wondered anxiously. “Tell me what’s wrong, sweetheart.” 

If he wasn’t confused when her tears began, he certainly was when his use of an endearment only caused them to fall faster. 

“Reese, I have something I need to tell you.” Her trembling voice expressed these words so softly that he could barely hear them. He had a sinking feeling that he wouldn’t want to hear what she needed to tell him, but she would probably self-destruct if she didn’t voice her thoughts. 

“Okay,” he agreed, kissing her gently on the lips. “I’ll go brew us a pot of coffee while you get dressed, okay?” 

“Okay.” She tried to give him a smile, but he could tell that she was failing at the effort. 

This was very not good. 

*** 

_6:07 a.m._  
He’d left ten minutes ago to make her some coffee. Maybe it was more than ten minutes ago. She certainly didn’t know. Time had seemingly stopped shortly after receiving her birthday present. 

He loved her. 

While that revelation certainly wasn’t anything new, in the past she had been able to dismiss his words as incoherencies muttered while in the throes of passion. That clearly hadn’t been the case that morning. 

He loved her – really loved her – and now she was about to break his heart. 

Her eyes swung towards the bedroom window, as she was tempted to flee. She could drive away and never look back. 

Except she had made the same promise a hundred times, but she always ended up back in his bed where she knew she belonged. 

Besides, he deserved the truth, and he deserved to hear it from her. But she still had no idea how she was going to tell him. 

A soft knock on the door startled her out of her reverie. She turned towards the door and saw Reese, holding two cups of coffee. 

“Cream and no sugar, right?” he verified, as he handed her a mug of the warm brew. 

“How did you know?” she asked, shocked that he knew how she liked her coffee. 

“I never forgot,” he replied, as he ushered her out of the bedroom and into the adjacent living room. He took a seat on the couch and motioned for her to do the same. 

They sat in silence for a few moments. He was obviously waiting for her to begin, but she didn’t know what to say. 

“Reese, why did you give me that locket?” she asked, stalling for the moment. 

“Because I love you,” he replied, puzzled as to where this conversation was heading. “Speaking of which, why aren’t you wearing it?” 

“Reese, I – ” 

“No arguments,” he insisted, after retrieving the necklace from his bedroom. After placing it around her neck, he added, “I didn’t buy this for you so it could sit in a box all day.” 

She sensed that he was teasing, both in his words and in his eyes, but they still caused tears to start pouring down her face. He instantly pulled her against his body and tried to comfort her. Before she knew what was happening, the whole story was flowing from her lips. She told him about her husband and her farce of a marriage, about how she would come to visit him when James made her feel unloved, and about how much she loved him. Finally, her tears subsided, but he continued to hold her tightly in his warm embrace. 

“Do you love him?” he asked, referring to her husband. She shook her head silently, afraid that voicing her thoughts would cause her to start crying again. “Then why the hell did you marry him?” 

“I thought that I loved him, and that he loved me too. He seemed so enamored with me. I mean, he proposed after we’d been dating for only a few months, and we married shortly thereafter. He seemed to want nothing more than to marry me and be with me. I guess I needed that in my life, after what happened with Miguel.” 

“What about me?” he questioned. “Don’t you know that if you had only called me, I would have been there for you? I would have flown out to see you, wherever you were, and I would have done everything that *he* did. Only I would have actually been in love with you.” 

“You wanted to marry me?” She couldn’t believe it. She’d thought that in high school he’d been nothing more than a schoolboy with a stupid crush. 

“I’m sure you probably thought that I couldn’t possibly have loved you – the real you – when we were in high school. I knew that you didn’t really love me, but it was nice to think that the most beautiful girl in my class was my girlfriend, you know?” 

“Believe me, I know,” she groaned. “But that’s what got me into this whole situation. I was finally getting over Miguel, and there was this great guy that fell in love with me. He seemed perfect – intelligent, rich, and gorgeous. I didn’t even think to question why he wanted to marry me so quickly. It’s just … ” Her voice trailed off as she searched for the right way to phrase her thoughts. “How do you know that you wouldn’t have been making the same mistake as me?” 

“Because I grew up with you. Because no matter how much you tried to hide your true colors, sometimes you would slip and I would see the real Katherine Elizabeth Bennett shining through. Or, how about because I loved you enough to want to know all I could about you? You’re fiery and passionate. You try like hell to hold onto everything and everyone that’s important to you.” 

“So where do we go from here?” she asked, almost afraid to hope that his words meant that they could still have a future together. 

“Nowhere.” Kay’s eyes swung up to meet his own, and she was shocked at how cold he looked. With his mouth set in a tight line and his eyes not showing one drop of emotion, he barely resembled the man that had opened his heart to her moments before. 

“But, Reese – ” She tried to argue, but he interrupted her. 

“No. As much as I have loved spending these nights with you, I can’t do this, knowing that when you leave each morning, you’re going back to him. My heart just can’t take it anymore.” 

“I could divorce him,” she offered, frantic to find a way to hang on to what they had. “I probably should divorce him anyhow. Our marriage is a complete sham anyhow.” 

“Kay, you can’t do that. I don’t think I could stand to know that the only reason I was able to marry you was because I came between you and your husband. You owe it to him to try to fix your relationship. Please, promise me you’ll try.” 

“Reese – ” 

“Promise me,” he repeated, his steely gaze locking with her own. 

“Alright. I promise,” she muttered unhappily. She didn’t want to stay married to James – even if she couldn’t have Reese anymore. 

“Thank you,” he replied as he helped her to her feet and began to escort her to the door. 

“Goodbye, Reese,” she murmured, as she hugged him in the doorway. Before she knew what was happening, his lips met hers in a searing kiss. Their tongues danced in the early morning light, sending shivers of delight down her spine. 

“Goodbye, Katherine,” he whispered hoarsely, a hint of a smile playing on his stolid face. “Take care of yourself, okay?” 

“I will,” she agreed, as she headed towards her car. 

“I’ll always love you,” she added to herself as she closed the car door behind her. Quickly, she started the ignition and shifted the car into drive, before she collapsed into tears in front of a man who had clearly lost all respect for her. 

He watched her from his front step until her car was well out of sight. Had he just sent away the only woman he had ever loved? What the hell did he just do? 

“You did the right thing,” he said to himself, as he headed back inside. He knew it was the truth. He couldn’t let himself come between two married people, no matter how much he loved her.


	4. Part Four

**Part Four**  
“Fear is that little darkroom where negatives are developed.”  
—Michael Pritchard

_Walgreens Pharmacy_  
 _2909 E Washington Avenue_  
 _Madison, Wisconsin_  
 _August 14, 2013; 2:21 p.m._  
“Y también, puedes tomarla con comida, si tu quieres. ¿Entiendes?” 

“Sí, señor. Muchas gracias.” 

“De nada. Hasta luego, Señora Suarez.” 

Reese watched with a smile as the elderly Hispanic woman walked slowly away from the counter. When his guidance counselor had encouraged him to take a foreign language in high school, he had immediately chosen Spanish. After all, he already knew some from all the time he spent at the Lopez-Fitzgerald dinner table. And now, given how regularly his knowledge of this second language aided him at work, he was especially glad that he had continued to pursue the language at the University of Wisconsin. 

“There’s a refill at the counter,” one of the pharmacy technicians called out. Reese pulled himself out of his thoughts and headed over to the counter to help the customer. 

“Do you have any questions on your refill today, miss?” he asked, reaching for the woman’s prescriptions so he could prepare himself for any questions she might have. “You have had these … prenatal vitamins before, correct?” 

“Yes, I have,” the woman affirmed, in a voice that was all too familiar. “How are you doing, Reese?” 

If questioned in a court of law, Reese would have been able to testify that for a split second, his heart stopped. First it was with the joy and excitement of seeing the woman that, even after months had passed, ruled both his heart and his dreams. But that joy quickly turned to bitter disappointment as he realized that she and her husband had clearly reconciled their differences and were expecting their first child. 

“I see congratulations are in order. I’m happy that the two of you worked things out,” Reese replied evenly, trying to stop himself from admiring her sundress-clad figure. Unconsciously though, he couldn’t stop his eyes from tracing the subtle curves of her still-fit body. He noted that her left hand rested protectively upon the slight bulge just below her abdomen, showing off both her baby-to-be and her dazzling wedding band. 

Wait. 

There was no ring decorating her fourth finger. Why on earth would she not be wearing her wedding band? He had heard of women who gained so much water weight during their pregnancies that wearing rings proved to be uncomfortable, but from the looks of the rest of her body, that was certainly not the case. 

His eyes flew up to meet her own, but before he could ask what the hell was going on, he saw a thin gold chain hanging around her neck. The pendant was hidden underneath the neckline of the sundress, but he couldn’t help but hope that she was wearing the locket he’d given her. 

But what would that mean? He had no way of knowing for certain, short of asking her, so that was what he would have to do. 

However, she beat him to the punch. 

“Thanks, Reese,” she responded, hiding her eyes from him beneath her curtain of hair as she grabbed her bag of vitamins. “I’m sure I’ll see you around.” 

Quickly, she walked away from the counter, from the pharmacy, and – in particular – from him. He felt his heart breaking all over again, and a part of him wanted to just let her run away from him. He wouldn’t have the life he’d dreamed of, but at least he wouldn’t set him up for disappointment yet again. 

But there was a chance – albeit, a very slight chance – that perhaps she wasn’t married anymore. Whether the baby was his or James’ didn’t matter to him. At least, not that much. He just wanted to have Kay in his life again, and he’d accept whatever emotional or domestic baggage came along with that. 

“Peter … ” he began, his eyes swinging towards his fellow pharmacist and friend, as he tried to determine how to ask if he could bail out early. 

“Go ahead, Durkee. Thanks so much for covering for Judy this morning. I know this place is a little out of your way. Anyhow, I think we’ve got things under control here.” 

“Thanks, guys. I owe you, Peter,” he replied, as he practically sprinted out of the pharmacy. 

“Wait, wait, wait,” he pleaded as he caught her arm just outside the store. “Kay … we’ve got to talk. Let me take you to a late lunch. Please?” 

She turned, determined to send him on his way. Surely he had a life of his own by now. He didn’t need her and her fucked up life messing with his plans. 

However, she made the fatal mistake of looking into his slate gray eyes. They were so eager and were tinged with a bit of hope that she hadn’t seen there in such a long time. She knew that she couldn’t say no and break his heart. 

He broke yours, a little voice in her head nagged. 

While that was true, she had been asking for a broken heart, going after him when she was still married. So she found herself agreeing to a late lunch and – for once – allowing someone else to take control for a moment. 

*** 

_Ella’s Deli_  
 _2902 E Washington Avenue_  
 _Madison, Wisconsin_  
 _August 14, 2013; 2:45 p.m._  
“So what have you been up to?” she asked as they took their seats in the restaurant across the street. 

He raised his eyebrows questioningly. She was clearly trying to avoid telling him what was going on for as long as possible. He could indulge her for a bit at least. However, he wasn’t planning on letting her out of his sight until he knew what was going on. 

“Not too much. I’ve been working a lot.” 

“Really? I’ve never seen you there before.” 

“The pharmacy where I usually work is across town – closer to my place. They needed some extra help today, so I offered to come in and work. It’s not like I have a girlfriend or anything that I need to be spending time with.” 

Kay’s own eyebrows raised in surprise. How was it possible that he didn’t have a girlfriend? He was everything that a woman could ask for in a man. Romantic, handsome, great in bed … She knew that if she still had his love, she wouldn’t let him go ever again. 

As it was, it had been difficult enough to return to her home and leave him behind last time. The only thing that kept her from turning around and driving back to him was the knowledge that he didn’t love her anymore. 

Well, perhaps he had still loved her, but he had clearly lost all respect for her. When he told her that they could never see each other again, the look in his eyes had been so cold, so unforgiving. She’d never thought that Reese would be able to look at her without some hint of love – or at least friendship in his eyes. Yet that morning, his eyes had been completely void of all emotion. 

That had hurt. 

It wasn’t his fault. After all, she knew from the beginning that sleeping with a married woman went against his basic moral code. But still, she persisted and continued going to see him and make love to him. 

She didn’t deserve his forgiveness or his love. Not after the way that she had treated him for so long. First, when they were in high school, she had treated him, her own boyfriend, like his feelings were irrelevant and unimportant. After graduation she had forgotten him, until the sight of him on the streets of Madison brought him back to the forefront of her mind. She then proceeded to use him to feel better about herself and the miserable life her horrible decisions had caused her to lead. 

“What about you?” 

His question interrupted her cycle of derision and self-pity. 

“Not much,” she replied, trying to contain the tumultuous emotions that battled inside her. “I ended up moving, actually. I used to live over in Sun Prairie, but I just moved into a small apartment not far from here.” 

“Really? How is James taking the move?” 

She smiled wryly. “He’s happy, I think, and so is my mother. He’s finally able to get his favorite food anytime he likes.” She couldn’t help but laugh as she saw Reese staring at her with a confused look on his face. 

“James moved into the Bed and Breakfast, so now he can eat all the tomato soup cake he wants,” she explained. “Things just weren’t working out between us, so we got a quick divorce.” 

“That’s too bad.” He reached for her hand on top of the table, rubbing it soothingly. 

“No, it’s fine. We weren’t meant to be, and now my mother finally has the child she always wished I had been. I wasn’t happy in that family, but now I’ll have a family of my own. I don’t have to think about them anymore, if I don’t want to.” 

“But won’t James want to be a part of his child’s life?” The shock was shown clearly on his face. 

“In order for this child to belong to James, we need to have slept together. Do you really think I would have been so quick to jump into bed with a man I didn’t love?” She stared him down, truly hurt that he thought so little of her. 

“But if this isn’t James’ baby … ” Reese gazed earnestly into Kay’s eyes, hoping that they would tell him the answer to the question he was afraid to ask. “Is – is it mine?” 

She nodded mutely, afraid of his reaction. Would he try to take the baby away from her after the birth? He probably thought that she would be a horrible mother – always going off and bedding random men from her past when she had other obligations. And with his money and his family’s power, he could hire a top-notch lawyer and easily persuade a judge that the child would be better off with him. She knew she couldn’t handle that. 

This child was her only remaining connection to him. The knowledge that she would soon be caring for a child that would be a mixture of him and of her was all that kept her going, really. She may not be able to have his love, but she could at least have his child. 

But now … Now she might not even have that. 

“Why didn’t you tell me?” 

His question was fair. “I was afraid.” 

“Afraid? Afraid of what? Why on earth would you be afraid of me?” he asked, looking hurt and even slightly offended. 

“You made it clear that you never wanted to see me again, for one,” she countered. “Besides, I’m sure you have this rich and glamorous life. You don’t need me and your illegitimate child messing that up for you.” 

“What made you think I never wanted to see you again?” 

She squirmed in her chair, uneasy with the direction in which this conversation was heading. She was tempted to leave him sitting there, but she knew it was the coward’s way out. It was odd, she knew, that her response in recent years to the instinctive fight or flight reflex was typically to flee. Back in high school, she’d always chosen to fight whenever she had felt threatened. Oh, how the years had changed her. 

“It was the way that you told me that we couldn’t be together anymore. You were disgusted with me and with my behavior – and rightly so.” 

“You thought I was disgusted with you?” He was amazed at how she had interpreted his behavior. “Kay, it was taking all of my willpower not to say, ‘To hell with your marriage vows.’ I loved you, and I wanted so badly to hold you tight and make everything better. But I knew that what we were doing was wrong and that I had to try to make things right between you and your husband.” 

“You still loved me?” she asked in a small voice, almost as if she was having problems believing his words. 

“I did then, and I do now,” he confirmed with a nod of his head. 

“Really?” 

He nodded again, as a wide grin spread across his face. 

“Are you going to ask me to marry you?” she questioned, causing a low chuckle to escape his lips as he nodded again. “Then the answer is yes. Yes, I will marry you,” she informed him with a bright smile on her lips. 

“Now, wait a second. I haven’t asked you to marry me *yet*,” he argued. Her smile dimmed, so he added, “But I will eventually. I just want to make sure that you’re not going to make the same mistake you did when you married James.” 

“But I didn’t really love him. Not the way I love you,” she reminded him. 

“You thought that you loved him when you married him. And I don’t want to wake up in six years and find out that you fell out of love with me and are carrying another man’s child.” He saw a hurt look flash across her features, so he cupped her face and forced her to look into his eyes. “I can’t tell you how happy I am that you came to my bed all those months ago. Those moments we shared together were some of the happiest of my life. I just don’t want to drive you to do that again, with someone else. Okay?” 

“Okay,” she acquiesced. 

“In the meantime, would you like to move into my place? It has to be difficult, being on your own and dealing with all that pregnancy stuff,” he finished in a rush, his cheeks colored in embarrassment. 

“I’d love to,” she agreed with a heart-wrenching smile. 

“Great.” 

“Hi, my name is Dina, and I’ll be your server today,” a bouncy blonde-haired girl greeted them. “Are you ready to order?” 

“I’ll have a ham and cheese sandwich on rye bread, with a glass of water, please,” Reese ordered, without even glancing at the menu. Clearly, he had been here before. 

“Uh … ” Kay began, stalling for time as she quickly paged through the menu. “I’m sorry, could I have a few more minutes?” 

“Sure thing,” Dina chirped, flashing her pearly whites. “I’ll be back in a few.” 

“Don’t know what you want yet?” he asked, overstating the obvious. 

“Is it my fault that I can’t find what I want on the menu?” she responded saucily, her eyes clearly announcing her intentions. She watched as his cheeks colored and as he quickly found the tablecloth to be *very* interesting. It appeared that while he had grown into something of a sex god in the past few years, he was still easily embarrassed when it came to the topic of sex. 

Good to know that some things never changed. 

*** 

_4:02 p.m._  
“I can’t believe that I – a thirty-year-old woman – am letting you talk me into riding on a merry-go-round!” Kay protested as Reese helped her up onto the painted wooden horse. 

“What?” he replied indignantly, as he snaked his arm around her waist. “I don’t know about you, but I am very out of practice. And, as the parents of this little one, we’ll have to be prepared to go on the merry-go-round.” 

“Yes, I understand that,” she responded, trying to fight the smile that played faintly on her lips, “but how will riding it now, help us with our child in the future?” 

“Speaking of our child, is it a boy or a girl?” 

“Don’t change the subject!” she scolded, seeing through his badly disguised attempt. 

“I’m sorry,” he apologized with a mournful puppy-dog look on his face. “I was just curious so I could start thinking of names.” 

“I don’t know if it’s a boy or a girl. I want to be surprised.” 

“Well, what if I want to know?” he teased. 

“That’s too bad then. I want to be surprised, so we’re not going to know.” 

“Well, who’s your OB/GYN?” he questioned, loving the fire he saw dancing in her eyes. “I’ll go down and ask tomorrow, and I won’t tell you – promise.” 

“No such luck, Durkee. They’d never tell you anything without my consent. And maybe I don’t want to give it to you.” 

He was laughing aloud by this time, half-expecting her to be sticking her tongue out at him as she moved up and down on the carnival ride. “All right then, I guess we’ll have to pick out names for both a boy and a girl. How about Georgia? Or Madison?” 

“We’re not naming our child after any states,” she declared. “And we are most certainly not naming her after the city in which she was conceived!” She paused for a moment, considering the potential options. “How about Reese Junior?” 

He looked at her, his thoughts clear. “You have got to be kidding me. Do you have any idea what kind of jokes I had to endure? Any and all candy-related names are out. I’m not having my kid teased about having creamy peanut butter insides.” 

“Well, I know I’m rather fond of Reese’s pieces myself,” she responded with a straight face, raising an eyebrow as she allowed her gaze to move noticeably down his body. 

“Behave,” he scolded, causing her to pout. “Can I pacify you by promising to let you do a thorough exploration of said pieces later?” 

“You are a man of your word, so I suppose that’ll have to do.” She laughed to herself, again noting the faint blush on his face. 

Gradually, the ride came to a stop with both of them lost in thought. He helped her down from her perch, as she rolled her eyes at him. 

“Reese, I’m pregnant, not incapable of taking care of myself.” 

Rather than responding directly to her complaint, he offered up a new name for consideration. “Hey, Kay? What would you say to the name Chastity?” 

“Other than you’ve got to be fucking kidding me?” She paused for a moment. “Actually, Reese, that’s a good idea. Maybe we shouldn’t sleep together until we get married. I mean, we’re already setting up a very dysfunctional lifestyle for our child. Do we really want to compound that by living in sin? While my OB/GYN did give me the go-ahead to have sex all night long if I wanted to – ” It took all of her willpower not to laugh as the man beside her let out a low, strangling sound. “I’m just not sure if that’s the type of lifestyle I want to grow accustomed to,” she finished. 

“So, um, I take it you’re not a huge fan of the virtuous names?” he questioned, clearly hoping that her words were nothing more than her own twisted way of punishing him for even suggesting such a name. 

“Reese, you know better than most that it was two different ‘virtuous’ people that made my life a living hell. Charity and Grace, in my personal opinion, acted nothing like their names implied that they should. Instead, I was forced to be charitable and give *Charity* that which I had worked so hard to earn. And my mother was a disgrace – telling me that I was a horrible cousin for loving dear, poor Charity’s boyfriend. Who gives a shit about what Kay wants, right?” 

“I do,” he interjected, interrupting the rant against her so-called family. 

“I know you do, and I love you for it. I know I’m not the easiest person to love.” 

“Well,” he began, “perhaps I should thank God for that. After all, if Miguel had half a brain in high school, he would have realized that a wonderful, beautiful, loving woman was in love with him and snagged you himself. But now you’re mine, and I don’t ever plan to let you go.” 

Kay smiled to herself, as Reese wrapped his arms around her in a warm embrace. She had finally found a man who would love her unconditionally, and, together, they would provide a good environment for their children. Finally, she had found where she belonged. 

She was home.  
 **END**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for reading! This fic (originally written who knows how many years ago, at this point) was my first attempt at any "adult content," and required a lot of hand holding from the awesome Homer J B Crazy throughout the writing process. Now, in retrospect, it's one of my favorite pieces.
> 
> Any comments or critiques you have are more than welcome. Thanks again!


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